Galvanize Raises $18M in Series A Funding Led by University Ventures Fund

Galvanize to open new campuses across the U.S. and launch major expansion of education offerings for digital innovators and entrepreneurs

DENVER, Colo., June 19, 2014-- Galvanize, a network of urban campuses designed to educate digital innovators and entrepreneurs, today announced that it has received $18 million in Series A financing. University Ventures Fund, a higher education focused investment firm, led the round with participation from other investors. Since launching its first campus in Denver in October 2012, Galvanize has expanded to San Francisco, California, and Boulder, Colorado, with additional campuses in Denver and Fort Collins, Colorado, also underway. Each Galvanize campus cultivates a diverse community of entrepreneurs, students, employers, mentors and investors under one roof, creating a unique ecosystem where working and learning are combined.

With the funding, Galvanize will be opening new campuses across the U.S. and significantly expanding gSchool, Galvanize’s education operation, with plans to launch several new programs by the fall. Galvanize will also be growing its campus in San Francisco’s SoMa neighborhood to 70,000 square feet, enabling expansion of the campus’ membership capacity, gSchool classroom spaces and meeting and event areas, like the addition of a 250-seat auditorium.

“Galvanize is the future of education for the skills-based economy. Now is the time to more profoundly disrupt how we train the next generation of digital innovators and entrepreneurs,” said Daniel Pianko, Partner at University Ventures Fund. “Galvanize is more than a new model. It’s a movement that’s challenging how we approach technology, entrepreneurship, education and talent development.”

Currently, Galvanize is home to more than 150 startups and member companies, including Box, WordPress creator Automattic, Good.Co and Pandora, and has partnerships with Google, IBM and others to provide exclusive content and programming to the startup community. In addition to valuable workshops and networking events, Galvanize also facilitates mentor office hours where members can gain business advice from experienced entrepreneurs, investors and industry experts. By becoming a Galvanize community member, digital innovators and entrepreneurs are able to learn from other members, find collaborators and leverage special resources, such as Galvanize’s investor network and formal education and training opportunities. Members can level up their skills with a part-time Galvanize workshop or take a 24-week, immersive full-time developer training program at gSchool. Workshops are open enrollment-style, while gSchool requires a more rigorous application process. Curriculum for all Galvanize education opportunities is regularly updated to keep pace with advances in technology.

“The ‘degreed-and-done’ system of education is outdated. Instead, today’s digital innovators and entrepreneurs need a more modern campus like Galvanize where work and learning are aligned and on-going,” said Jim Deters, co-founder and CEO of Galvanize. “We’re setting a new standard that recognizes the importance of a community-based learning environment that enables a melting pot of members – students, entrepreneurs, employers, experts and investors – to learn and work side-by-side and provides the support and resources they need to learn, launch and grow at any stage of their journey.”

For more information about Galvanize, membership or its education offerings, visit http://www.galvanize.it.

About Galvanize

Galvanize is a network of urban campuses for digital innovators and entrepreneurs that aligns work and learning by combining education, experience and industry under one roof. Since launching its first campus in Denver in October 2012, Galvanize has expanded to San Francisco, California, and Boulder, Colorado, with more campuses due to open throughout the U.S. in 2014 and 2015. Each campus offers training and education opportunities, tech-focused events and a variety of workspace options. The organization was co-founded by three entrepreneurs – Jim Deters, Lawrence Mandes and Chris Onan – with a shared vision of creating a galvanized community to serve digital innovators at any stage of their entrepreneurial journey. To learn more about Galvanize and membership, visit http://www.galvanize.it. For more information on Galvanize’s education offerings, including its 24-week, immersive full-time developer training programs at gSchool, go to http://www.galvanize.it/school.

About University Ventures

University Ventures is the premier investment firm focused exclusively on the global higher education sector. University Ventures pursues a differentiated strategy of ‘innovation from within’. By partnering with top-tier universities, colleges and service companies, and then strategically directing private capital to develop programs of exceptional quality that address major economic and social needs, University Ventures expects to set new standards for student outcomes and advance the development of the next generation of colleges and universities on a global scale. For more information, visit http://www.universityventuresfund.com.